The Tears Beneath the Mask
by Migalouch
Summary: An unlikely friendship, stuffed bears won at the fair, and remembering a painful past. Second in a BM/WW series AU Warning
1. An Unlikely Pair

Second part of my series about an original take on BM/WW getting together. More info on the origin of the idea and everything in my first story "The Man Behind the Mask." I like to be original and this story I believe is just that something that I have not seen before.

Thanks a ton to MGD for betaing this and being a huge help in bringing this to life.

A/N: This story is told through the perspectives of BM and WW and I believe they are fairly easy to tell apart but Chapter 1 is through the eyes of WW.

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Chapter 1: An Unlikely Pair

It was the graveyard shift at the Watchtower, and Diana was stuck with monitor duty. While most of the others would complain about being scheduled at that late hour, Diana found it oddly peaceful. Living fulltime on the Watchtower with J'onn did not offer much seclusion, not that J'onn was one to come and strike up a conversation. But sharing a home that was frequented daily by five other people at all hours of the day, it was hard to find some quiet time. Diana usually spent the time learning about the history of Man's world or just better acquainting herself with the cultures that she had to visit in her role as Wonder Woman. Tonight was very different though; tonight Diana just wanted to spend some time alone to try and wrap her head around the past two months since the Justice League went public.

She experienced many things in the past two months that filled her with a variety of emotions, and, quite frankly, she was glad to finally have some peace and quiet to sort them all out. In the forefront of her mind, there was her recent expulsion from Themyscira. She understood why her mother did it, but understanding did not dull the pain of losing her home and her family. The reality she would never see them again. The entire ordeal put her in what Flash would call a "Blue Funk", and she could not hide all the signs of her depression from her teammates. Even with the condolences of five of her teammates, the matter was never far from her mind. Five, the number made her boil with anger, since the sixth member, Batman, had offered no words of comfort or encouragement in her time of sorrow.

She was getting along very well with all of the League members but Batman. If anything, she grew to dislike him the more time she spent around him. His arrogance was unbelievable. She could still recall the day, not even a week after he accepted a part time membership, that each of them had found a formalized ethics hand book for the League in each of their rooms. To this day, none of the members were aware of how he had gotten onto the station without them issuing him the codes. Of course, he was extremely competent. She was hard pressed to imagine another person that she would want next to her in a difficult situation, but his lack of emotion was infuriating. Not once did he show concern for any of their wellbeing unless it affected their performance.

The main problem that she had with him was his complete lack of trust in them. Two months had passed, but his identity remained a mystery. In any of their missions, he prepared extra contingency plans for if they failed. He never had complete faith that they would carry out their assignments as planned, and the disrespect towards her felt like a slap in the face.

After her exile, she expected some type of emotion from him since he was the one who kept Flash from arguing with her mother and dishonoring her when she couldn't speak for fear of crying on the spot. _No._ Instead he acted like nothing had happened and treated her like it was any other everyday mission. While half of her was grateful, he treated her like nothing had happened, unlike the rest of the members, who constantly treated her like she would shatter like glass emotionally if they confronted her. The other half was furious at his complete and utter lack of any sympathy. She would never expect him to embrace her or protest in outrage about how unfair it was, but a word or two of comfort or encouragement would have been kind.

Diana found it very ironic that the person to actually pull her out of her mood was none other than the man Superman warned her so adamantly against, Bruce Wayne. Even though the banishment greatly affected her, she would not let it change her dedication to her mission. So, she continued to make appearances at fundraisers and charity balls. Coincidently, it turned out that most of the events that she frequented were also attended by the Prince of Gotham, Bruce Wayne. While his reputation as a lothario should have kept her interactions with him to a minimum, she always managed to say hello and talk to him for a brief time at each event. She couldn't help but smile remembering the meeting, where he helped her push past her depressed state and regain her positive attitude.

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It was the fifteenth annual charity ball supporting the women's shelters in New York City. Diana attended to help boost the donations for the cause. While she was not taking a direct part in the fundraising, like being auctioned off as a date or a dance partner, the coordinators found her presence, more than enough, encouraged donors to contribute funds above the target sum by a considerable amount. Unfortunately, tonight, like the past two weeks, her inner turmoil concerning her recent expulsion from Themyscira preoccupied her mind from the ball.

Looking for a respite from the party, Diana found refuge on the balcony and leaned against the railing overlooking the city. She had trouble wrapping her head around the events that led to her exile, even though; she knew that she should stop dwelling on it. Feeling herself sink into a sad state, she wondered how much longer she had to stay before she could return to her room in the Watchtower. Suddenly approaching footsteps interrupted her thoughts, and she wished that whoever it was would leave her in peace. However, the footsteps stopped right behind her. She prepared herself to once again put a smile on her face and pretend to enjoy the conversation of some wealthy donor.

"You know, Diana, the balcony isn't exactly the most original place to get away from the crowds. In fact, it's usually the first place they look," the person behind her warned. Immediately recognizing the owner of the voice, Diana turned around with a dazzling smile on her face and greeted Bruce Wayne.

"Speaking from experience, Bruce?" Diana joked in a playful tone. Overjoyed, she finally was talking to someone who didn't hold her on some symbolic pedestal.

"Well, occasionally the ladies tend to be a little smothering, and even I have to take a break from time to time," he responded joining her by the railing, "But I have this feeling that the people inside aren't really what's bugging you."

A little surprised by his insight, she curiously asked, "What makes you think something else is wrong?"

"I don't know exactly. There's something different about you tonight," Bruce scanned her form. His eyes moved from twist on the crown of her head to the satin heels on her feet. He tilted his head slightly to the left transfixed on her eyes.

"I don't know what you mean. My dress is new, but I'm still Diana, an Amazon, an emissary for my people, and a member of the Justice League," Diana rambled quickly shifting uncomfortably under his gaze.

"I can see it in your eyes; the spark is missing. Even when you are surrounded by men hitting on you, your eyes have this light that shows that you're happy to be here just to help others, but that light is gone tonight. I get this feeling that you don't want to be here even if it is for a good cause," Bruce commented without an ounce of his usual flirtatious tone.

For a moment, she was taken aback. Without so much as talking to her, he could tell something was wrong, but he also successfully deduced that it had a significant impact on her life. Sighing, she supposed that it would help if she got it off her chest. Taking a deep breath, she told her story, "About two weeks ago, I went on a mission with the Justice League to my homeland of Themyscira in order to stop a magician from opening the gates to Hades. After we successfully defeated him, my mother, the Queen, banished me from the island for violating Amazonian law. I broke a sacred creed by bringing men to the island. Now, I can never go back home." _She would not let him see her cry no matter how it hurt_.

"I'm sorry," Bruce whispered next to her. He didn't look directly at her but continued to lean on the rail looking at the city lights. After a minute of silence, she turned to look at him curiously. She wondered why he, unlike the others who knew of the matter, did not comment on the unfairness of it or how she should be proud of showing strength in impossible circumstances.

"There is this wonderful place on the corner of Lexington and 5th that has the best ice cream in the city. I figure that we've spent enough time here and can slip away without too much disappointment," he suggested with a sly smile. It was as if he didn't even hear what she just confessed.

Flabbergasted at his complete lack of empathy, she started to become angry very quickly. "I just revealed a deeply personal issue that I am going through, and you hit on me. I didn't listen to the rumors that you were a thoughtless womanizer, but I can see they aren't that far off the mark after that comment," she ranted with increasing volume to the point where she was practically yelling at him.

Without showing any fear that he had a demigod shouting at him from less than two feet away, he calmly and softly explained, "What would you have me say? To an extent, I understand what you're feeling, probably more than you know. Because of that, I know there is nothing to say that will erase the hurt." At this point, his voice went from calm to hushed tones. "Your life, as you knew it, has been completely torn asunder. I'm sure there is a part of you that wants to shut yourself away in a room and cry out your loss. But the truth is that no amount of days you spend by yourself or how much you think about what you lost, you can't change what happened." Finally, he turned to look at her, "You have a hole in your heart, Diana. There is only two ways to move forward: either you allow the empty space to fester, or you let me take you to ice cream. Maybe I can help you fill it back up."

Somewhere in his speech, she felt his words pull at the strings of her soul. She saw only understanding in his eyes, which seemed to mirror the pain she felt. Moved by his words, she replied, "I'll get my coat." It was a battle to simply say that without breaking down into tears.

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Bruce took her for ice cream that night and picked her up at her hotel the next morning for coffee. Following a different event in Boston, it was a trip to a small Italian bakery and a baseball game around noon the next day. He took her out after the next event and the one after that until it became a ritual between the two of them. During each event, he would come up to her with his infamous smile and ask her to dance. While they danced, he would spring his next outing proposal on her.

Surprisingly, he never hit on her once, and his flirtatious behavior, which came out on occasion, was conveyed only in a humorous and non-suggestive manner. Best of all, she started feeling better. Slowly day by day, she began to smile, to laugh more, and to think about her exile less and less.

She began to circle events on her calendar in red looking forward to their next little adventure. It had almost become a game between them. He would give her the length of one dance to try and guess where he was going to take her that evening and the following morning. This encouraged her to spend some time researching events in the local area and what he could possibly concoct that would be fun for both of them. She would never forget the look on his face when she prompted him one night to guess where _she_ was going to take _him_ that night and the next morning.

The gossip columns started to imply that they were seeing each other and that he was inevitably cheating on her since he was seen with other girls on his arm at the parties, which she did not attend. She did not have any romantic feelings for him. Nor was she jealous of his trysts, only disappointed when he partook in them. Romance was a foreign concept to her. While she was beginning to understand it from television and what she saw in the world, she did not think she was ready for it, much less for Bruce.

He embodied some traits that she found to be very endearing such as charm, humor, understanding, compassion, and generosity. However, he lacked discipline, a warrior's spirit, dedication, and the desire for self improvement. Bruce was an incredible friend with a big heart, but he seemed to be floating along in life without any direction. She knew that when she was ready to try a relationship that she would not be able to be with a man like that. Until then and even after, she was more than happy to stay close friends with him enjoying his company. Also it would be a little odd considering he was the first person to update her view on romances between men and women. She couldn't repress the smile that came to her face when thinking about the day he told her about equal opportunity relationships.

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It was the morning after a fundraiser. Bruce introduced her to the concept of a "county fair" about forty minutes outside of the city of Cleveland. While dropping her off at her hotel last night, he warned her to dress as casual as she possibly could and to make sure she wore comfortable shoes that she didn't mind getting dirty. At the time, she was confused by his instructions, but she was immensely grateful for his warning when they got here.

She was surrounded by farm animals as far as she could see. Horses, goats, cows, and others were led through crowds of people to various events or competitions around the fair grounds. The paths mainly consisted of either dirt or hay thrown over dirt and had animal droppings mixed in to the point where it was like navigating a mind field. Children ran and played through the crowds. Rides whizzed and whirled in the center of the fair. Games lined the pathways with promises of prizes for those willing to try.

Horsemanship competitions were held on one side of the fair while something called a "tractor pull" was on the other. Barn doors were open, so she could roam through looking at the different horses and petting them as she pleased. For the first time since she left home, she got to drink goat's milk without it being artificially enhanced. She adored the horses and loved the jumping competitions. Her gift from Artemis, the ability to commune with animals, was being used to its fullest today as she roamed through the barns stopping to pet horses, rabbits, chickens, and, even to Bruce's amusement, the pigs. It immediately ranked near the top of her list for most enjoyable places in Man's World.

Best of all, no one recognized her in her simple outfit. She wore the classic outfit of jeans and a t-shirt just like most people in the fair crowd. Her raven tresses were bound in a ponytail poking out the back of a Gotham Knights baseball cap, and dark sunglasses hid her bright blue eyes. Bruce had given her a long-sleeved flannel shirt that covered the telltale sign of her heritage, the metal braces that donned the wrists of every Amazon. Bruce was likewise just another face in the crowd, and they moved around unhindered by flocks of adoring fans.

She had to hand it to Bruce. Not only did he go along with her, but he also dragged her around a fair amount as well. He took her to see men making sculptures out of wood, women showing off their handmade quilts, and a troop of Irish dancers performing on a stage. All the while, she peppered him with questions about what she was seeing. As they were walking down one of the main avenues surrounded by people playing games, she noticed a boy trying to pop balloons with darts while a girl cheered him on. "Bruce, why is that boy trying to pop those balloons? Why is that girl cheering him on so hard?" she didn't quite understand for the life of her the excitement the girl was showing.

Turning his head, he looked at them for a minute before a smile came to his face, "Oh them. He's trying to win a prize for his girlfriend, and she's probably cheering him on to get her a big one."

"What's so important about him winning her a prize? Why doesn't he just buy her something?" she pressed on noticing that the boy was spending more money trying to win one of the stuffed animals than they actually cost.

"Well, it means more to them if he wins something. Anyone can buy those little bears, but both will remember this for weeks if he wins it for her using just his skill. It's more about making a memory together than the actual object. Plus there is the whole romantic stereotype of the big strong man winning glory while his woman, who couldn't have done the same, cheers him on," Bruce summarized ending the last sentence with a smirk on his face.

Punching him lightly in the arm, Diana laughed at his explanation and couldn't help adding, "So, does that mean I should go win you a little stuffed bear while you cheer me on as the big strong champion?"

Bruce added between laughs, "Usually, that's the man's job, but recently society is all about equal opportunity. Why not go give it a whirl, my treat." Before they left, she dragged him to a booth and won a prize on her third try as he cheered her on the entire time. Together they walked out of the fair laughing and talking about the things that they had seen that day while Bruce Wayne, longtime bachelor and womanizer of Gotham, left with a little teddy bear in his arms.

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Since Bruce took her out for ice cream, she noticed that the pain and sadness of her exile from Themyscira was no longer as unbearable as it had been. When she thought about it, it still hurt. Yet, it was easier to look back with fondness and not regret or sorrow. Her trips throughout Man's World with Bruce began to show her the more intimate side of the world. She started to think that making this new world her home would not be such a bad idea.

Suddenly, an alarm cut short her musings. Looking quickly up on the screen, she saw the alert about an attack on a city in Eastern Europe that had a population just over 20,000. Scanning the information, she discerned that the attackers were robotic in nature numbering just under thirty with each capable of the destructive wrath of a platoon.

Quickly, she activated the microphone to contact all Justice League communicators, "Wonder Woman to all Justice League members, there is an assault on a city in Eastern Europe by approximately thirty robotic entities. All League members' assistance is requested. Uploading coordinates to all communicators now." With that statement, she switched the computers to remote alert and headed towards the hanger hoping she could get there in time to prevent the any loss of life.


	2. An Unusual Realization

Big thanks to MGD for betaing hope everyone enjoys this chapter

A/N: This part is mostly done (besides the beginning section) in the perspective of Bruce

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Chapter 2: An Unusual Realization

Stepping off the Javelin was like entering into a warzone. The minute that Diana was on the ground she was immediately engulfed in a hail of gunfire from a robot on top of a nearby building. Unable to advance due to the amount of bullets raining down on her, she quickly flew backwards and around a corner while rounds pinged off of her bracers. Hearing a whistling sound, she swiftly cut to the right only to be propelled by an explosion into a storefront window. Rebounding off of an industrial sized refrigerator, her body hit with a resounding crash.

Shaking her head, she was faintly aware of the heavy footsteps crunching through the debris of the store making their way towards her. Unsteadily, she rose to her feet trying to clear her head when she heard the whine of a Gatling gun's barrel preparing to fire. Knowing that she could not deflect the hundreds of impending bullets headed towards her in the next sixty seconds, especially at such a close range, she ripped the door off the refrigerator to use it as a shield.

Unexpectedly, the left leg of the robot buckled, and its aim was thrown low and to the left spraying a trench through the ground. Taking advantage of the opportunity, she launched the refrigerator door at the head of the robot and moved in attack. With a resounding clang, the door did no damage but kept the robot off balance long enough for her to rain down her fury turning the robot into sheet metal.

Once she was certain the robot was defeated, she crouched down to exam the left leg of the robot to see what caused it to buckle getting her out of a tight spot. Examining the joint closely, she saw a small batarang, probably of the EMP variety, stuck right into the back of the robot's knee. Looking up, she saw Batman standing just inside the store looking at her through those emotionless slits in his cowl. Slightly angered that he was the one to help her, she bit out, "I did not need your assistance. I had the situation under control."

"I know," he simply replied while moving in beside her and investigating the ammo feed in the Gatling gun.

"They're using hollow point rounds. Their design causes them to expand outward on impact resulting in massive internal damage. These will kill humans. We can use their weak penetration to our advantage, so use the terrain as cover instead of a head-on charge," he explained as he slowly cataloged the weapon systems of the robot.

Nodding her head, she followed him as he exited the building. She knew that while she may not like this man he was still the most capable of getting them both through this unharmed.

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Crouching on the rooftops of a Greek hotel, Batman was staking out a warehouse that possibly held a connection to the drug trade in Gotham. While he was normally reluctant to leave Gotham, everyone truly dangerous was currently locked up in Arkham. The rest of the city's players were keeping a low profile for the time being. While keeping his vigil, he let a part of his mind wander to the Justice League and his involvement in the past months.

Other than the occasional mission and running down some leads on a few cases, he rarely spent time on the station. Insofar, the League was performing better than his original expectations with all of the members complimenting each other well from a tactical standpoint. Socially, the other six members became fast friends and enjoyed each other's company. They had even tried to befriend him on occasion. Always, he turned away back to his city. Given their gifts, they didn't realize that most of his time was devoted to constantly maintaining and improving his mind and body leaving very few precious moments to spare for himself. While they had abilities to fall back on that required no upkeep, he was simply flesh and blood, susceptible to injury and exhaustion. Every day was a constant battle to keep his edge. While they celebrated a victory or sat around talking about their lives, he would return home and resume his conditioning to keep from falling behind.

There was one member, who seemed to hold a bit of resentment towards him, albeit with a certain amount of respect. Diana never attempted to befriend him or made conversation past the bare minimum of civility. Not that he minded because he didn't. Yet, he found it odd that she was the most social of the group but treated him with barely contained disgust. From what he could gather, she opposed to his inception into the League claiming his ideals did not align with theirs. He was too shrouded in darkness to be a hero coupled with the blows to her pride when he easily eluded her for a week. All this rendered her cautious and created her animosity towards him. However, despite her dislike, it was none of his concern as long as her performance on the field was not affected. As far as he could tell, she acted professionally in the line of duty and respected his abilities enough to not let it interfere with their work. Personally, she just hated him.

When she was exiled from Themyscira, his years of experience in observing body language and non verbal cues showed him how much it devastated her emotionally. Even though, she hid it from the others. When Flash started to protest to the Queen, he knew that she would not have been able to find her voice to stop him from staining her honor, so he stepped in. The others did not understand she was a warrior, and warriors lived by a code that the average person did not. Like the Samurai of feudal Japan, a warrior's honor was one of their greatest possessions. He could not let them damage hers despite their ignorance regardless of her opinion towards him. Afterwards, he noticed that the others treated her like a broken child by not arguing with her, not differing to her, or not standing up to her. They were afraid to hurt her feelings. He knew that she needed some part of her life to return to normal, so he let the others make their apologies and try to cheer her up. Instead, he treated her as if nothing had happened, and she was still as capable as she was before her exile.

He half-expected her animosity to grow due to his lack of empathy. What he did not expect was for her to withdraw further into herself. It was not very surprising considering the other members tried help her but said the wrong things. Diana knew that the Queen exiled her, not her mother. She also knew that what she did was right since it saved the lives of her people. Versed in Amazonian law, she probably already knew going into the battle what the consequences of her actions would be. Still her honor and compassion for her people drove her to make the selfless decision and do what was right regardless of the personal cost. While the rest of the League had words of comfort, they never really took action besides small simple gestures like getting her a drink.

Realizing her mood was going to become a factor in the performance of her duties. He decided that it was time to take a more active role. Immediately, he knew it was impossible for Batman to accomplish this role, even if it was preferable given it was in a work situation. She was a being of emotions and easily consumed by them. Batman was her opposite preferring action to feelings. Adding in her animosity towards him, any approach he made was destined to fail. She probably would not even give him enough time to actually say something before dismissing him entirely.

Bruce Wayne, on the other hand, was perfectly suited to the job. While there was a concern about his alter ego being linked to a superhero, the fact that they had already met and talked on a regular basis at numerous fundraisers and charity events made it plausible for them to interact more intimately. She was too valuable to the League for him not to try and help, so he chose to approach her at a fundraiser outside of Gotham, where he would not be distracted and offer her what she needed, something to occupy her time.

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He attended a women's shelter benefit in New York and was added as a last minute guest due to a donation made by Wayne Enterprises' humanitarian department. Usually, he would decline such routine invitations, but this time he was on an unofficial mission to help out a League member. Diana was still depressed due to her exile from Themyscira, and it was rapidly approaching clinical levels. He planned to stall giving the donation for a few days, so it would be delivered while he was in New York on business. Since he already was in the city, it afforded him two unique opportunities. First, his decision to stop by the benefit would not draw any attention. Secondly, it also would afford him a perfectly legitimate excuse for arriving without a date.

Showing up without a date, he could approach Diana freely while others would chalk it up to his womanizing ways. His initial plan was to coerce her into a lunch date the next day followed by a date scheduled for some time in Gotham. Hopefully, she would have a new emotion to replace her sorrow after a couple of dates with him, which would subsequently end with him dumping her in a humiliating fashion. Anger wasn't a big improvement, but it would let her focus more on League matters instead of her exile. The dates would also help to occupy her mind. When he heard murmurs of 'Wonder Woman' throughout the room, he knew that she had arrived.

Turning to watch her entrance, he took a moment to appreciate her beauty. There was no denying the enchanting appeal of her beauty, but something was off tonight. Scrutinizing her eyes, he noticed that they did not burn with their usual flame. Looking closer, he recognized the lost hope in them; it was the same look that he saw in the people of Gotham who had forsaken hope. Seeing that look in her eyes, he knew that if he went through with his initial plan that he would do more harm than good. If she was already in such a state of emotional anguish, compounding it could have consequences with a lasting impact.

As he watched her make a circuit through the room from the corner of his eye, he realized that she was constantly floating from one group to another. She never stayed with anyone for more than a few minutes and never seemed to find a friend among the crowd. Mentally assessing the people that he had seen tonight, he perceived that he was the most familiar face in the room since they met several times in the past months.

Abruptly, it hit him. She did not have a single friend here at the event and came solely for the benefit of the charity. Diana's only real friends were in the League, but all of them, with the exception of J'onn, lived lives outside of the League and were aboard the Watchtower as little as possible. J'onn was there with her fulltime, but he imagined the company of a reclusive Martian was not the most personable. Plus he knew her pride prevented her from confessing to the League members how much her exile affected her. Now, that he was looking for it he saw it as clear as day. Diana had lost most of her friends and family now that she was no longer welcome at home.

He knew all too well the personal pain that someone went through when dealing with such a sense of loss without anyone to relate to. As he watched her walk out to the balcony, he knew that he could not let her fall into the same pit that he had. He had concealed his pain for most of his life, and he was not arrogant enough to believe that it had not scarred him permanently on an emotional level. Diana reveled in her emotions. It was her honesty and purity of spirit that charmed people. Her openness made her an icon for women. Wonder Woman was a warrior full of emotions, not hampered by them but driven by them, and a symbol for women around the world showing them how to stand up for themselves against oppressors. Her image was vital; that image could not die. He would not let it die for the sake of the world.

Moving out to the veranda, he closely examined her body language as he approached. Seeing her tense up, he smiled a little to himself. She probably thought he was another bureaucrat or politician come to get her to support for one of his causes. Unable to stop himself, he opened his mouth and said, "You know, Diana, the balcony isn't exactly the most original place to get away from the crowds. In fact, it's usually the first place they look." Seeing her turn and watching her smile bloom, it was the first one that touched her eyes all night, only firmed his resolve that he was doing the right thing.

"Speaking from experience, Bruce?" she joked back. Hearing such a light tone sent a flood of relief through him that she was in better spirits than he had hoped.

Walking up to lean on the balcony wall that overlooked the city, he played along, "Well, occasionally the ladies tend be a little smothering, and even I have to take a break from time to time." Knowing that he had to word these next parts carefully, he forged on, "But I have this feeling that the people inside aren't really what's bugging you."

Practically feeling her tense up beside him, he kept his gaze on the city hoping that she was curious to know how he knew that she was upset. He was thankful when she asked, "What makes you think something else is wrong?"

"I don't know exactly. There's something different about you tonight," Bruce looked her over from head to toe before locking onto her eyes.

"I don't know what you mean. My dress is new, but I'm still Diana, an Amazon, an emissary for my people, and a member of the Justice League," Diana responded clearly uncomfortable that he could read her so well.

Knowing that she wouldn't accept anything but the complete truth, he decided to tell it. "I can see it in your eyes; the spark is missing. Even while being surrounded by men hitting on you, your eyes have this light that shows you're happy to be just to help others, but that light is gone tonight. I get this feeling that you don't want to be here even if it is for a good cause," he said making sure to leave out even an ounce of a flirtatious tone.

Now was the moment she either assured him that she was fine, not interested in his help, or she would trust him enough to share her burden with him. Hearing her sigh like she was releasing the weight on her chest, she began, "About two weeks ago, I went on a mission with the Justice League to my homeland of Themyscira in order to stop a magician from opening the gates to Hades. After we successfully defeated him, my mother, the Queen, banished me from the island for violating Amazonian law. I broke a sacred creed by bringing men to the island. Now, I can never go back home."

Hearing the burst of emotion in her voice made him think about how his home and family were stolen from him. He knew that there were no words to truly give her comfort, so he said the only thing he could. "I'm sorry," he whispered not looking at face her lest she see the emotion that stirred in his eyes. Sitting for a minute in companionable silence, he knew that there was nothing else that he could say that the others hadn't. Unfortunately, all of those words had not worked yet, so it was time to try something completely different.

"You know there is this wonderful place on the corner of Lexington and 5th that has the best ice cream in the city. I figure we've spent enough time here and can slip away without too much disappointment," he smiled a lopsided smile. Even before he said, he knew he was in for a tongue lashing, so he prepared himself.

Feeling the anger roll of her, she launched into a tirade, "I just revealed a deeply personal issue that I am going through, and you hit on me. I didn't listen to the rumors that you were a thoughtless womanizer, but I can see they aren't that far off the mark after that comment." The yelling was understandable, but he thought it was a bit hurtful that she brought his personal life into the issue. Especially when he was most assuredly not trying to hit on her because if he was it would have been something much more refined.

Ignoring her anger, he knew that the only way to get through to her was to be frank, "What would you have me say? To an extent, I understand what you're feeling, probably more than you know. Because of that, I know there is nothing to say that will erase the hurt." Feeling overcome with emotion, he remembered how he had suffered and struggled to hide it from his voice, but he had to push forward for her sake, "Your life, as you knew it, has been completely torn asunder. I'm sure there is a part of you that wants to shut yourself away in a room and cry out your loss. But the truth is that no amount of days you spend by yourself or how much you think about what you lost, you can't change what happened." Turning to meet her eyes, he let the emotion that he usually kept bottled up come to the surface and reach his eyes, "You have a hole in your heart, Diana. There is only two ways to move forward: either you allow the empty space to fester, or you let me take you to ice cream. Maybe I can help you fill it back up."

In an unsteady voice, he heard her say, "I'll get my coat." He was relieved when she tuned to collect her things from inside since he wasn't sure he would be able to say another word without breaking down himself.

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He took her out that night and again the following morning for coffee. Knowing that one dalliance would not be enough to help her, he took her out on several more occasions whenever they were at the same social event. He would always approach her, ask for a dance, and pitch his idea to her while they glided across the floor. Every time she agreed with more enthusiasm than the last. He started to get the suspicion that not only did she look forward to their outings, but it was one of her main reasons for coming to these events.

Looking back, he still found it amusing when she started bombarding him with guesses of their next trip less than fifteen seconds into their dance. From there, it turned into a game of her guesses and of his polite reminders that she only had one song to guess. Diana upped the ante and completely took him by surprise one night when she told him to guess where they were going. Honestly, those nights were some of the most enjoyable ones that he had in a very long time.

What had started out as a mission, it had quickly turned into something that he looked forward to. It was refreshing to be able to interact with someone who was not after his money and could keep up with him intellectually. With her, he didn't feel the need to act like a playboy. In fact, the only flirting between them was humorous in nature.

He knew that he was acting completely out of character since he rarely ever took the feelings of someone into consideration. Regardless, each time he went to a fund raiser that he knew she was attending, he purposely planned to arrive without a date, so she would never feel put off. The good times that they had together opened his eyes to something he had been missing most of his life, a best friend.

With Diana, there was no pressure to be the playboy that the rest of the world expected. Tabloids thought that he was putting the moves on Wonder Woman whenever they saw them together. But his constant dalliances with other women at other parties and his and Diana's lack of physical affections, the journalistic view shifted more towards friendship than romance. Besides, it was hard to speculate that they were romantically connected when he took her to public places and always returned her home at a respectable time.

Instead Diana was someone who could help him unwind every once in awhile that he did not have to dump at the end of the night. His normal fear of women seeing the scars crisscrossing his torso did not apply since they were not moving towards intimate grounds. Diana was not ready for relationship being too new to the world and its customs. There was also the fact that he did not want a relationship with her since he had some very obvious secrets he did not want to be privy to.

Thinking of his secrets brought a small grin to his face since he could only imagine what she would think if she realized that the Batman, who she despised so much, and Bruce Wayne, her close personal friend, were in fact the same person. Diana, in her innocence, would not understand the reasons for his secrecy or wanting to keep the matter so intensely private. Sharing with her, his private thoughts or problems at work were matters that people would not be captured and tortured over. His identity as Batman, on the other hand, was something people would kill to possess. Because of that, he took drastic measures to ensure that people did not discover it.

Still they were having fun together as Diana learned what the modern world had to offer, and he had a person who helped him unwind without any pressure or expectations. Besides, seeing her reactions to some of today's customs was worth its weight in gold. He particularly found it amusing how she took to a county fair like a fish to water. While most high society girls would have been disgusted with the amount of dirt, animal excrement, and the social level of people at such a place, she found it all fascinating and wanted to explore as much as possible. He remembered watching her arrival in plain jeans, his flannel shirt, and the Gotham Knights hat that he bought for her at the game in Boston. The hat had been a stroke of genius on his part if he did say so himself. Getting it for her had insured that they would not appear on the jumbotron at the game since she was wearing the rival team's hat. Plus it gave her the customary ballpark souvenir. Even among the rural setting of a fair, she still looked gorgeous, and he couldn't stop himself from admitting that.

His musings were cut short, however, as Diana's voice rang out over the League communicator built into his cowl. Knowing that it must be an emergency, since he was a reserve, he listened in as she gave a quick mission summary.

"Wonder Woman to all Justice League members. There is an assault on a city in Eastern Europe by approximately thirty robotic entities. All League members' assistance is required uploading coordinates to all communicators now," her voice came through his receiver. Checking the coordinates on his gauntlet, he calculated that it was only a fifteen minute flight from his current location. Pressing the button to signal the Batwing, he hoped that when he arrived the damage to the city would be at a minimum. Hearing the roar of engines approach, he shot a grappling hook upwards latching on to the passing plane and tore off into the night sky.


	3. A Heart Revealed

Well this took a little longer than what I would have liked but overall I am quite happy with it. Warning there is some descriptive scenes that are of a mature nature (not smut just slight gore). Because of this I boosted the rating to M so as not to offend anyone.

Thanks again to my wonderful beta MGD and I hope everyone enjoys

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Chapter 3: A Heart Revealed

Looking at his instruments, he could tell that Diana was already on the scene since his radar showed the Javelin hovering a few miles outside the city limits. Flying overhead, the place was a virtual warzone with civilian causalities a possible certainty. He homed in on Wonder Woman's position using her communicator. Glancing to the left, it quickly became apparent that he didn't need to search to pinpoint her location since the explosions and gunfire were like a gigantic neon sign pointing in her direction.

Banking the Batwing, he headed in the direction of the destruction while he mentally prepared to drop into the heart of the conflict. Once he was in position, he hit the release switch causing the canopy to slide back before he vaulted into the night sky. Freefalling, the telescopic lenses in his cowl made out the form of Diana being thrown through the front of a store with a robot following in her wake. Knowing that the blast probably disoriented her, he tucked his limbs tightly into his body and descended in a vertical dive to arrive on the scene as quickly as possible. With perfect timing, he unfurled his cape one hundred feet from the ground and caught the updraft from the fires set off by the robot, which enabled him to land silently behind it.

As the robot started into the store, he noticed that Diana was still trying to gather her wits after her impact. Hearing the slow whirl of the barrel of the robot's Gatling gun warm up, he swiftly launched an EMP batarang at the junction behind the robots left knee. As his batarangs whirled towards its target, he witnessed Diana's resourcefulness as she ripped the door off the fridge to shield herself from the incoming gunfire.

Upon impact, the left leg of the robot buckled collapsing on the floor in front of Wonder Woman. It missed her entirely. Taking advantage of this, Diana hurled the door at the robot before launching into an attack. While he watched the impressive spectacle of her reducing the robot to scrap, he silently moved into mouth of the store waiting for her to acknowledge his presence. Eventually, Diana stopped pounding the robot into oblivion and examined the knee joint finding where his batarang hit. Recognizing his handiwork, she lifted her head to see him standing there.

He saw the familiar flash of anger cross her face whenever they were in the same space. He was not surprised when she bit out, "I did not need your assistance. I had the situation under control."

"I know," he responded. Seeing that her pride was wounded due to his help, he decided now wasn't the time or place for an argument. Diffusing the situation was the wisest course of action for now.

Stepping towards the robot, he examined its weapon load out. He was angered when he recognized the rounds in the belt that feed the Gatling gun. Hollow point rounds, their sole purpose was killing people. They were incredibly dangerous to flesh targets since the point was designed to blossom after impact causing severe internal damage. He decided to tell Wonder Woman about what he found realizing that she may not know about different types of bullets.

"They're using hollow point rounds. Their design causes them to expand outward on impact resulting in massive internal damage. We can use their weak penetration to our advantage, so use the terrain as cover instead of a head-on charge," he relayed hoping that she would understand that her usual full frontal assault was more dangerous in this situation. Seeing her acknowledgement, he started for the exit knowing that she would follow. He also knew that, although she hated Batman, she would still trust his experience and knowledge.

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The dust cleared slowly after the League dispatched the last of the robots. They stood in the center of the city surveying the damage. Watching the city burn, Diana was always taken aback by the destructive capabilities of modern weapons. In Themyscira, a sword could end a life as easily as a bullet, but a sword never destroyed a building like the weapons of today. Superman's instructions shook her from her reverie.

"Spread out and find any survivors. If they are injured, get them to medical facilities. After that we will recover every body for the surviving families even if it takes us until next week," he directed everyone. With that statement, he lifted off from the ground and tore through the streets rushing to anyone in need of aid.

Diana and the rest of the League followed suit. For the next two hours, they cleared rubble, freed trapped people, attended to the wounded, and recovered the corpses of the innocently slaughtered. The League worked quickly and diligently to help whoever they could, but even these actions did not feel like enough.

Eventually, it looked like they found everyone when Green Lantern's voice suddenly came over the comms, "I need some help here. I . . . I don't know what to do."

Uncertainty was something that Diana had never heard before in his voice. Diana quickly took to the skies racing towards his position. Being on the opposite side of the carnage, it took her longer to get there. When she landed, everyone was present but Batman. They had assembled in front of a small building near the border of the destruction zone. The building sustained significant damage during the battle with a car literally lodged into the side of the building. The exterior of the building was riddled with missile blasts and bullet impacts; credit was due to the architects since the building still stood. Looking at each other nervously, the four members went inside to find out what had disturbed John so much.

Walking through the rumble into the dark interior, they headed towards the green light shining down from an opening on the second floor. Upon entering the room, Diana's heart almost broke into two. It took every ounce of her immense control not to break down into tears on the spot. There was a little girl on the floor hugging her knees to her chest as she rocked back and forth in a dry pool of blood with a glazed dead look in her eyes. She was trapped in her own world of horror. The girl was huddled between two bodies, which Diana could only imagine were her parents. They lay facedown surrounded by their own blood. It was impossible to tell how many bullets impacted their bodies; the flesh on their backs was too ripped up to discern any points of contact. Above the knee, the girl was mostly clean except for the tears running down her cheeks, but dried blood and human flesh stained her pajama bottoms below the knee. It appeared that her parents used their bodies to shield her from the onslaught. _O Hera, she couldn't have even been ten years old._

Superman spoke first, "J'onn, can you do something to help her?" The pain in his voice was clearly evident; it seemed that the sight killed a small part of him.

"I'll try," J'onn nodded in acknowledgement. J'onn's eyes began to glow as he searched the mind of the girl. After a few minutes, his eyes returned to their normal color. He sadly shook his head, "I am sorry, but she… her grief is so strong. I do not know what to do to help her through this."

Lantern broke the silence starting to move towards the girl, "Well, we can't let her stay here. We have to move her before this whole place comes down."

Batman's voice suddenly cut through the room from the doorway, "Power down your ring and step away from the girl." His voice filled with so much anger that it caused ice to run through her veins as he swept into the room towards the girl. When John did not move, he grabbed the front of his uniform and shoved him out of the way back towards the other members. His attention was entirely focused on the frightened child.

"Shut off the power ring or I will cut it your off finger," he threatened. His voice held such determination that Diana had a feeling that not even the combined might of the League could stop him from carrying out his threat, but his concentration remained on the girl.

When John started to take a step towards Batman to protest his order, Shayera put a hand on his shoulder to still him. She softly whispered, "Just do it, John, now's not the place." Grudgingly, John powered down his ring, and the light of his ring faded filling the room with darkness.

Batman kneeled down in front of the small girl during the exchange. Not trusting him, Diana remained on edge ready to stop him if he caused the poor child more pain. Then, a voice came from Batman that astonished her and the rest of the League. It was not his usual no-nonsense gruff voice that inspired fear, instead it was soft and soothing laced with understanding and compassion. Quite frankly, it was a voice never intended to come out of him; yet, it flowed forth.

"Look at me, little one…it's okay. Look at me," Batman said slowly tilting the child's face so that her eyes met his. Even though their eyes met, the little girl was trapped in her shocked state. Then, his next move rendered all of them speechless when Batman pulled away his mask. Diana couldn't believe it. The man, who refused to share any personal information with them and went through painstaking effort to insure that not one of them knew his real identity, just revealed his face to a small child that he just met. Despite the gasps of shock from his teammates, he continued speaking to this child as though he didn't just reveal Gotham's greatest mystery. Luckily for him, the rest of the League could only see the back of his head.

"I know your pain. I know that it hurts, but it's not your fault. Nothing you could have done would have changed what happened today. Don't bottle your pain inside where it will just eat away at you. Cry, little one, I won't let you be alone," he gently told the girl in her native tongue. His voice carried so much compassion and pain that Diana couldn't stop the tear that ran down her face. Apparently, neither could the little girl since her eyes finally snapped back to reality. She must have connected to something in Batman's expression. With tears forming in her eyes, she hurled herself into his arms as he wrapped them both in his cape as if to shield them from the world.

Astonishment was the most appropriate word to describe Diana's thoughts right now. His behavior in the League caused Diana to think of him as a cruel, uncaring individual uncapable of emotion. After hearing him comfort this small girl, it was clear that her original opinion was far off the mark. The amount of pain, suffering, understanding, compassion, and just plain emotion that he conveyed in his voice was beyond anything she ever expected.

Witnessing him taking his mask off and holding the small girl in his arms, she wept for the child's loss immediately losing any doubt in her mind that this man was not a hero. His courage and selflessness may exceed all the heroic acts of legend that she had been regaled with as a child. _I have treated him so poorly, too_. Batman was worthy of her utmost respect. The entire time that she had worked with him was spent questioning his actions and never trusting what he did or asked her to do. Vowing to correct her transgressions against him, she almost did not see him stir.

He stood quietly putting his mask on and holding the sobbing girl like she was his own child. He turned towards the rest of them. "Bring her parents. Treat them as heroes," he whispered to them as he glided towards the door with the girl still in his arms. Diana watched in silence as he walked out of the room, still too overwhelmed by what they witnessed. As the Green Lantern and Superman moved towards the bodies to prepare them for transport, Diana slid out of the room to follow Batman. She could not ascertain why she followed. Maybe it was a quality in his voice, but she was certain that she needed to see his next actions.

As Diana walked out of a giant hole in the building, she saw Batman holding the girl in the street. They waited while in the distance rescue vehicles rapidly approached. Seeing the vehicles, the girl assumed that Batman was going to leave her with them. The girl's sobs increased.

Making hushing noises, Diana strained to hear Batman's voice. "Don't cry. I have to go and help others now, but don't worry. I will make sure that you're taken care of. I promise," he reassured her. With that, he slipped his hand into his belt and produced a small marble that he pressed into her hand. He gave her one last instruction, "Keep this safe for me. I will come to see you again to get it."

The small girl clutched the marble secuely in her hand as if it was her only lifeline. Even though her tears didn't cease, there was the smallest glimmer of hope on her face. He was not abandoning her; she would see him again. Lowering her to the ground, she quickly hugged his leg as he drew his cape around them. Only her head peeked out to watch the vehicles that were only yards away. When the vehicles stopped close by, he picked her up once again and walked towards the emergency personnel.

After a few minutes of conversation with one of the men, who was noticeably paler than when the discussion began, he handed the girl over and walked back towards Diana. Before she could think of something to say, the rest of the League emerged bearing the bodies of the deceased parents. After Lantern and Superman presented the slain parents, they all convened next to the building.

"I can't believe that all these people had to suffer, just because some military prototypes didn't have their IFF (A/N: Identification Friend or Foe, for those not up with military lingo) systems properly engaged," John said with great remorse.

Nodding in agreement, J'onn added, "I find it hard to understand why people create such weapons during times of peace." A sense of disappointment spread among them after J'onn's statement. Why did so many countries of the world have a constant need to remain militarily dominant?

Flash quipped hoping a joke could lighten the mood, "Well, at least we all know Batman is good with kids. Although, I think his face may have made that little girl cry."

Diana knew that this was not an appropriate time to make jokes and was slightly angered by this comment. Apparently, Batman agreed with her. Suddenly, he whirled around in a blur faster than she could follow and was suddenly holding Flash by the throat a foot off the ground against the wall of the building.

Before anyone could intervene, his voice filled with barely contained rage delivered in a quiet tone, "That girl will have nightmares for the rest of her life about what happened today. She will wake up every morning blaming herself, wondering what she did wrong, or asking why she didn't die with them." His voice was so powerful that Diana could see the fear it wrought in all of her teammates. She was not immune to the tone of his voice but found herself wholeheartedly, ironically, agreeing with his current actions.

"If I ever hear you disrespect the dead or those who have lost a loved one again, I will make sure that YOU have nightmares every night for the rest of YOUR life," he promised. With that, he dropped Flash, who immediately backed up against the wall in fear as Batman glared down on him with what could only be described as murderous intent.

After staring down Flash for a few seconds, Batman turned with a whirl of his cape and headed down an alley away from them. Shock, fear, and disgust were the universal emotions registering on the faces of her team members at that moment.

Superman started after Batman saying, "I don't care who he thinks he is. I will not tolerate that kind of treatment among team members."

Before he could catch Batman, Diana blocked his path. She interrupted him, "Don't, Superman. If you go after him, we may lose him completely." Surprised by her words, Superman stopped to contemplate her statement. Since she was the biggest opponent of Batman, he nodded for her to continue. Diana carried on, "I'll speak to him when he will be more willing to talk."

"What makes you think that he'll talk to you? He knows that you don't like him," Superman stated as much as asked.

"Because I think Flash deserved what he just did," she replied as she began walking in the direction that Batman went.

Hearing a strangled cry come from Superman's throat, she was relived when J'onn voiced his support for her, "While I do not agree with his methods, I also think Flash stepped over the line with his statement. Even though, I know he did not mean it intentionally." The rest of the argument drifted off behind her as she kept walking hoping Batman wasn't concealing himself, so they couldn't find him.

Fortunately, he had left his Justice League communicator on, which she figured he had done purposely. She followed his signal until it signed that he stopped on a rooftop four blocks away. Landing softly behind him, she was unsure how exactly to approach him. She agreed with what he did, but she still knew there was quite a bit of bad blood between them. _Why did I volunteer to talk to a man that no one has ever seemed to have a conversation with before?_

Before she could figure out how to begin, he took the matter out of her hands. "Did they send you for my resignation?" he questioned in his usual unemotional tone.

"No. What would make you think that they would?" she asked somewhat confused that he assumed his act warranted such consequence.

"You're the person that would take the most pleasure in delivering it," he calmly answered as if the fact that she was there was explanation enough.

"Actually, I volunteered to talk to you, and I was never told to ask for your resignation," she said seeing his head twitch as if he barely caught himself from turning to look at her. Maybe in surprise or maybe in curiosity, she couldn't tell. Standing behind him, she continued, "What I do know is that I have treated you poorly since we first met. I did not trust you and believed your intentions were selfish instead of heroic." She imagined that she had his full attention after that statement.

"Originally, I thought that you didn't uphold our ideals, and I fought to keep you out of the League. After today, my conscious and honor demand that I admit my error. It was foolish to suspect you. I will admit when I am witness to an act of heroism, and today the compassion you showed that little girl was nothing but that." _Hera, that had to be the longest thing she had ever said to him._

"You were right to be suspicious," Batman replied honestly, which surprised her. "Just as I am suspicious of all of you, it was one of my main reasons for joining the League. I wanted to make sure that you all knew that the League was created to keep peace and not dictate it," he finished.

Chuckling at this, Diana couldn't believe the irony, "So, the entire time I was trying to figure out if you were up to something, you were try to figure out if we were up to something."

"Paranoia is what has kept me alive for so long in this line of work," he simply stated.

"Fair enough, but I still have one more question," she prompted.

She could see his head nod as a sign for her to ask. Taking a deep breath, she asked, "Why did you let that girl see your face?" _Why do I hope that he won't just brush me off? _She noticed his back lock up as he stood straighter. _I can't believe that I surprised him with something._ She couldn't help the feeling of accomplishment that passed through her at his reaction.

For fifteen minutes, they stood together there in silence, him probably hoping she would leave and her not willing to leave till he answered. Eventually, he spoke in a whispered voice that sounded… broken, "No child should ever have to go through what she did today. Her parents ripped from her life as she knelt next to them hoping that any minute they wake up and move." Diana must have been losing her mind when she thought that his voice was actually a little choked up. He continued, "Waking night after night to the sounds of her own screams when even her dreams become an unbearable agony." No, she hadn't mistaken. His voice was heavy with emotion, and it sounded like he was fighting to hold back tears.

"That girl didn't need a hero to lie to her saying everything was going to be alright. Because it won't, her life will never be alright again. She didn't need to see a masked vigilante, whose mask inspires fear in the hearts of criminals. She needed a person, flesh and blood, who could reach her. Help her shed her tears, and let her know that she isn't alone in the world, even though, her parents are gone. Heroes are confident, powerful, unwavering, and a step above the normal person. She needed normal, a normal person that suffers and understands. That's what I gave her." Taken aback by his words, Diana heard the sorrow in his tone. Hearing this, somehow she knew that he wasn't talking about just the girl, and there was an unspoken connection that he felt with the child. Almost as if he knew what to do based on his own experiences.

Stepping into in arms' reach, she softy grasped his shoulder urging him to turn around. She had trouble making out his features through her tears. It didn't matter. She knew what she felt was what he felt too. Wrapping him in her embrace, she felt him slowly return the gesture. She stood there and cried into the crook of his neck for what she had seen today and for what had happened to him long ago.


	4. A Painful Parallel

Finally here is the last chapter of this segment of my series I hope everyone likes it and remember to review.

Huge thanks goes out to MGD for betaing this for me and helping turn it into something I am proud of.

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Chapter 4: A Painful Parallel

It was an accident, just an unfortunate accident. Thirty military grade robots were activated before their IFF systems could be installed. He investigated the nearby military base that the robots had originated from. All of the conclusive evidence showed no foul play. He collected samples that he would analyze later to ensure that it was truly the case, but as of now he didn't suspect any sinister motive. Super villains, who could have orchestrated this type of activity, would have used the robots much more advantageously.

While the others worked on recovery and rescue, this was his role on the team when he was called in. Why would he waste time searching individual buildings when Superman could just fly through the streets checking if anyone was inside the buildings while the Flash could extract them in a matter of seconds? No, his talents were put to much better use examining the nearby base. Evidence pointed to a mistake in the activation sequence of the robots. When the processors were booted up for an initial test, the poorly written codes activated the entire unit. The damage at the base was just as bad as the town, and most of the area was leveled in the robots escape.

As he walked back to his jet to return and report to the others, Green Lantern's voice sounded in his ear, "I need some help here I . . . I don't know what to do." Hesitation and uncertainty were never a good combination, especially not from a Marine. Quickening his stride, he entered the Batwing and rocketed off towards Green Lantern's location. When he arrived, he noticed that the signals from all the members were already inside. Silently, he entered the house like a wraith making his way towards the sound of voices.

When he was a few feet from the door, he heard J'onn's voice, "I am sorry, but she her grief is so strong. I do not know what to do to help her through this." Puzzled by J'onn's uncharacteristic helplessness, he stepped into the doorway and quickly understood why.

Rocking in between two dead bodies was a small little girl hugging her knees to her chest and staring into space with a dead look in her eyes. Suddenly, he was nine years old again sitting in the same place as that girl except he was trying to put his Mother's pearls back in her dead hand. Emotions rushed through him faster than Flash moved as he bore witness to the scene in front of him. Vaguely, the analytical part of his mind noticed even the smallest details and cataloged the looks of shock, pain, sorrow, and helplessness on the faces of his follower League members. As he looked on, his mind drifted back towards that night.

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_They were walking down an alley. He was in the lead practicing his Zorro sword maneuvers while his parents laughed walking behind him arm in arm. Suddenly, a man appeared out of the shadows in front of the trio with a gun pointed towards them. Paralyzed with fear, he barely registered the man asking his parents for their money and jewels. He looked on as the man reached for his mother's pearls, and his father instinctively moved in front of her._

_Suddenly, a large crack broke the quiet of the night. The sound was louder than any he had ever heard, a sound that was decisive in its abruptness. His mother's screams were silenced by a second crack that night. His parents fell to the ground in slow motion. His mother's pearl necklace ripped apart under the pressure of her falling body, and the pearls scattered throughout the alley like raindrops. Crimson colored his parent's well-tailored clothes and formed a puddle around their forms. He slowly crawled in between them. Kneeling beside them, he shook them hoping that they would wake up and not leave him alone in the dank, dark alley. _

_A click echoed in the alley as the hammer on the gun was pulled back into the firing position. Knowing that he was next, he looked up and stared into the man's eyes. Expecting to hear another crack, he met the man's gaze almost hoping for it as the gun was directed at his small form. Looking on, his only thoughts were of how he hoped to see parents again very soon. There was nothing left. The only true relief from this existence that was thrust upon him would come from the barrel of that gun. _

_Pointing the gun, their eyes met, and the man with the gun began to shake. At first, it was barely perceptible, but within seconds his entire body moved like a leaf caught in the middle of a strong gust. The gun dropped, and true terror shown on his face while he slowly backed away, unable to break Bruce's gaze. Turning, he fled into the night whimpering and shaking like a coward instead of a man, who had just ruined the life of a child. _

_The cops had arrived eight minutes later to find Bruce kneeling between the bodies of his parents trying to put his mother's pearls back into her lifeless hand because he knew how much they meant to her. No one knew what happened in those eight minutes while he was alone. Not a second of it was filed in any police report or investigated. It was just assumed that he was in shock during that time. What no one knew was that in those eight minutes Bruce Wayne made a vow giving birth to the Batman. _

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Lantern's voice broke him from his reverie, "Well, we can't let her stay here. We have to move her before this whole place comes down."

John was acting like a fool. Even though he had to wade through his own painful memories, he would not let this girl suffer like he had. Letting his anger surface, he hardened his voice to mask his emotions and began to move into the room, "Power down your ring and step away from the girl."

They all turned towards him, but his eyes did not register any of their looks. He only looked at the girl and moved towards her. Each step was agony. His past was something that hurt too much to even think about, but here now he was seeing a parallel of his own life. Instead of being the one to suffer, he was the one to comfort. As he continued forward, John apparently still in slight shock at everything going on continued to stand in his way. He grabbed the front of John's uniform and roughly tossed him back towards the others, never once taking his eyes away from the girl.

"Shut off the power ring, or I will cut it your off finger," he promised assuring Lantern that in no uncertain terms that he was as serious about his threat as he was about breathing.

As soon as the light was doused, his mind concentrated solely on the child blocking out everything but him and her. She needed comfort, but Batman did not do comfort. Batman was his mask hiding everything that he had loss and his pain. This girl needed to see that he understood, shared her burden, and would not leave her to wallow alone with only a few words of comfort.

Kneeling in front of her, he made his voice as gentle as he could as he tilted her head, so their eyes met, "Look at me, little one…it's okay. Look at me." Her eyes were fixed on the bodies of parents as if she expected them to move at any minute. As if the whole scene was just a cruel joke. Steeling his resolve, he moved his hand up and removed his cowl letting all of the emotions of his parents' death, for perhaps the first time in decades, show on his face.

Noticing the tiniest flicker of response in her eyes, he knew that he was having an impact. "I know your pain. I know that it hurts, but it's not your fault. Nothing you could have done would have changed what happened today. Don't bottle your pain inside where it will just eat away at you. Cry, little one, I won't let you be alone," he laced his voice with feeling to let her know that he understood. Yet, he kept the sorrow and loss out of his voice, so that she would not think her situation hopeless.

He felt the tears form in his eyes and allowed them to fall freely. As he cried alongside this small girl, he saw some semblance of life stir in her eyes. Once, twice, and finally they snapped back to reality looking at him and recognizing that they felt the same loss. Tearing up, she hurled her entire body into his arms as sobs wracked through her. As she cried in his arms, he wrapped his cape around them both enshrouding them in their own personal world and sharing their pain in one another's arms, divorced from all the destruction and chaos around them. Knowing that he had to be strong for her, he let the tears run down his face but kept the sobs at bay.

Eventually, he regained control over his emotions. Recognizing that Lantern was right about the building being close to collapse, he covertly wiped away his tears and replaced his cowl. Rising with the girl, still crying, in his arms, he walked out the door making sure that his gait did not betray his feelings. As he passed the League, he knew that he could not let this girl's slain parents be treated as ordinary victims. "Bring her parents. Treat them as heroes," he whispered knowing that it was the least he could assure for people so brave. Thankfully, none of the League said anything or tried to stop him as he moved out of the building.

While standing outside holding the girl, he saw emergency vehicles quickly approaching them. When the girl's eyes saw the lights, she began to cry harder. Knowing that she feared being abandoned again, he looked at her small, tear-ridden face and knew that he could not just leave her.

"Don't cry. I have to go and help others now, but don't worry. I will make sure that you're taken care of. I promise," he soothed her. Reaching into a compartment on his belt, he retrieved a marble that he used as a noise distraction while he moved in behind criminals. Holding the marble in his hand, it made him think of one of the pearls that he had gripped for so long ago and how in his time of need they were his only connection to his parents. Putting the marble into her small hand, he gave her hope by promising, "Keep this safe for me. I will come to see you again to get it."

Seeing the relief shine on her face, she knew that he wasn't going to just disappear from her life. He lowered her to the ground. As quick as a mouse, she hugged his leg not wanting to let go. Knowing that she was still vulnerable, he drew his cape around them only leaving her head exposed, so that she could watch the vehicles approach. When they were within range, he picked her up and carried her towards the emergency personnel.

As soon as he knew that she was safe and in the hands of the proper authorities, his mind shut down. He had a passing sense to make the EMT promise him that the girl would be well taken care of and to threaten him that if any harm came to her that he would be held personally responsible. Seeing the man shake his head in agreement, he handed the girl over giving her hand a small squeeze before letting go and walking away.

Spotting Wonder Woman in front of the building, he walked over to stand next to her. He was not aware of when she got there or how much she had seen, but he hardly cared at this point. His mind was still a mess trying to reconcile his past experiences with what that small girl had gone through today. Lost in his own thoughts, he silently watched as Superman and Lantern turned over the bodies of the parents. He felt as if he was in a daze. The only thing his mind concentrated on was the image of that little girl and how it reflected the image of himself. Both were kneeling next to their slain parents covered in their blood.

However, Flash's words received his full attention, "Well, at least we all know Batman is good with kids. Although, I think his face may have made that little girl cry." What he said made Batman's blood boil. Bruce knew that it was an effort to uplift the mood and keep their spirits high. Frankly, he didn't care, and his anger surged through him giving him the speed and strength that might be comparable to a metahuman. Without realizing it, he had Flash's throat in his hand pressing him up against the wall.

Flash would never repeat such an incident again. He would make sure of it using the voice that had broken and terrified countless criminals of Gotham, "That girl will have nightmares for the rest of her life about what happened today. She will wake up after every nightmare blaming herself, wondering what she did wrong, or asking why she didn't die with them." Wanting, no needing to drive his point home that such behavior was unacceptable, he narrowed his eyes and continued, "If I ever hear you disrespect the dead or those who have lost a loved one again, I will make sure that YOU have nightmares every night for the rest of YOUR life." With that, he dropped Flash to the ground while still pinning him to the wall with his stare.

Glaring down at Flash for a few minutes, he let the threat engrain itself into everyone's minds. For a brief moment, he let them see a glimpse of the horrible things that he was capable of, and only his immense self control contained. Never had they realized why he was a thing of nightmares. Never had they truly seen his will, or how his gaze was a conduit of fear that left people rambling messes. But now, he made sure Flash saw and remembered.

With a quick turn that sent his cape whirling, he stalked down an alley away from the League and any other human being. Walking blindly, his mind echoed the roar of the gunshots that so tragically changed his life. What he had said to Flash was not just a possibility for the young girl's future but also the reality of his actual life. It took an extreme amount of willpower to keep his feet moving away from the others, so they would not bear witness to his weakness. Registering that people started to appear on the streets, he quickly grappled up to the roofs and moved from one roof to the next.

Eventually, he stopped on the edge of a roof and just stared at the destruction of the city. The setting seemed fitting; the complete chaos below mirrored the chaos inside of him. In both cases, no matter how hard either tried they would never be able to completely erase the memory of their destruction or repair all of the damage done.

As he stared into oblivion, he heard the gentle rustle of someone landing on the roof behind him. Since he did not hear the flap of Shayera's wings or the heavy thud that usually accompanied Superman's landing, he concluded that they sent Diana. Cursing himself for leaving his communicator on, a small part of him was glad that it was Diana and not one of the others. While he did not wish to burden her with his problems, her presence always soothed his addled mind. Right now, he honestly was afraid to be alone with his thoughts.

He did not expect to receive that kind of support from her. Bruce Wayne would but not Batman. She was probably here to demand his resignation for threatening a teammate. Certainly, she would take the most pleasure in such an act. She was horrible at hiding her distaste for him. He found it ironic that they were close friends and bitter rivals at the same time. At this moment, he didn't want to deal with it. Knowing that they were right to ask him to leave the League, he decided to get the matter over with quickly. "Did they send you for my resignation?" he asked.

"No. What would make you think that they would?" she inquired. Diana could not hide the confusion in her voice. He did not want to waste the time explaining how logically threatening Flash was ground for expulsion, so he decided to just say what he was thinking.

"You're the person that would take the most pleasure in delivering it," he answered being straight with her.

"Actually, I volunteered to talk to you, and I was never told to ask for your resignation," she responded. Hearing this, he started to turn his head to look at her in shock and barely stopped himself from completing the movement. As her footsteps approached him, she continued, "What I do know is that I have treated you poorly since we first met. I did not trust you and believed your intentions were selfish instead of heroic."

While he knew that it was in her nature to be completely honest and admit mistakes, he was still a little surprised when she admitted her mistake. Realizing that she wasn't done speaking, he let her continue, "Originally, I thought that you didn't uphold our ideals, and I fought to keep you out of the League. After today, my conscious and honor demand that I admit my error. It was foolish to suspect you. I will admit when I am witness to an act of heroism, and today the compassion you showed that little girl was nothing but that." Well, that was quite the mouthful. Yet, he didn't want to let her think her instincts were wrong.

"You were right to be suspicious," he said honestly, "Just as I am suspicious of all of you, it was one of my main reasons for joining the League. I wanted to make sure that you all knew that the League was created to keep peace and not dictate it." Even though he revealed his real reasons for joining the League, he had a feeling that she wouldn't share any of this conversation with the others.

Her chuckle elevated his mood, and he smiled a little. She joked, "So, the entire time I was trying to figure out if you were up to something, you were try to figure out if we were up to something."

"Paranoia is what has kept me alive for so long in this line of work," he simply stated.

"Fair enough, but I still have one more question," she said.

Hearing her take a deep breath, it sent warning signs off in his mind. When she opened her mouth to speak, those suspicions were confirmed. "Why did you let that girl see your face?" she asked. Instantly, his mind wandered from her question and snapped right back to the image of that little girl rocking herself with her knees to her chest between her parents bodies. His spine stiffened to the point where his body thought it might snap, but he didn't care that he could barely breathe.

Time lost all meaning, and it felt like his soul was in agony. He knew that he should tell her to leave. That it was none of her business, but he also knew that she had a right to that knowledge. For almost a year, they had fought side by side, and he had never once told her a personal thing the entire time. It didn't matter that she was well acquainted with Bruce Wayne. She wasn't aware that they were the same person and probably had wondered for a long time who was under the cowl. Compound with the fact that he showed his face to a girl, who knew him for less than a minute; it probably conveyed a real sense of resentment towards his fellow Leaguers. Diana had a right to know; even though, it pained him. He knew that it would be wrong to leave her question unanswered.

Strengthening his resolve, he approached the question like it was a matter of business. He was not surprised when he failed. His menacing voice that caused criminals to cower in fear came out in barely a whisper, and he knew that it reflected how broken inside he was. He explained, "No child should ever have to go through what she did today. Her parents' lives ripped from her life as she knelt next to them hoping that any minute they wake up and move." He was barely even aware of the fact that he was explaining his memories instead of the girl's. He continued on fighting sobs that were threatening to escape, "Waking night after night to the sounds of her own screams when even her dreams become an unbearable agony."

_I am the Batman. I do not show emotion. I am a wraith that sends evil fleeing. I am vengeance. I am the night._ Regaining a small measure of control, he pressed on, "That girl didn't need a hero to lie to her saying everything was going to alright. Because it wasn't, her life will never be alright again. She didn't need to see a masked vigilante, whose mask inspires fear in the hearts of criminals. She needed a person, flesh and blood, who could reach her. Help her shed her tears, and let her know that she isn't alone in the world, even though, her parents are gone. Heroes are confident, powerful, unwavering, and a step above the normal person. She needed normal, a normal person that suffers and understands. That's what I gave her." Finishing his statement, he knew that his reputation as the Dark Knight of Gotham was forever changed in her eyes. She would almost certainly question his ability to be in the League.

Then, he heard Diana approach and felt a soft hand grasp his shoulder. She turned him to face her. Seeing tears in her eyes, his doubts were replaced when he saw understanding in her expression. Diana wrapped her arms around him, buried her head in the crook of his neck, and cried. Suddenly, he realized that she wasn't crying for the little girl. No, she was crying for his loss. Returning her hug, he held her as she cried against his shoulder while he cried against hers secure in the fact that his cowl would hide his tears.

To Be Continued...


End file.
